1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improvement of a low-operating-force connector in which female and male housings can be connected and disconnected with a small operating force by means of a cam member.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional connector of this kind, as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6, has been proposed by the Japanese Utility Model Preliminary Publication No. Heisei 1-88474. It consists of a female housing a, a male housing b and an operating member c. The female housing a has a rotary shaft a.sub.2 projecting from a hood a.sub.1 ; the male housing b has a cam follower b.sub.1 projecting therefrom; and the operating member c consists of a rotating plate c.sub.1 formed with a hole c.sub.2 as a rotating center and a cam groove c.sub.3. The rotary moment of the operating member c is utilized to effect the coupling and decoupling of the female and male housings a, b with a small operating force.
As can be seen from FIG. 6, the engagement of the female and male housings a, b is completed when the operating member c has fully rotated and the cam follower b.sub.1 has reached the far end c.sub.31 of the cam groove c.sub.3. The operating member c can be easily removed at any point of the engagement process, from the initial to the final stage of the process. Hence, there is a possibility of an assembly worker removing the operating member c with the female and male housings a, b incompletely connected. It is difficult to tell at a glance whether the housing connection is complete or not.